Unemployment and Productivity Growth: An Empirical Analysis within the Augmented Solow Model
Abstract
Does a country’s level of unemployment have an impact on the long-run growth rate? Incorporating unemployment into a generalised augmented Solow-type growth model, yields some answers to this question. In particular, we show that the impact of unemployment on productivity growth heavily depends on the influence of human capital in the production function. In the traditional Solow model, unemployment has neither an influence on long-run productivity growth nor on the long-run level of productivity. However, if human capital matters, unemployment has a long-run effect on the level of productivity. Moreover, if we allow for endogenous growth within our theoretical framework, unemployment has an impact on long-run productivity growth. Using data from 13 OECD countries from 1960 to 1990 within a dynamic panel data framework, we find supportive evidence that an increase in unemployment indeed reduces the long-run level of productivity. Taken at face value our results suggest that if unemployment would have remained at the level of 1960 then productivity today would be roughly 10% higher than it is.Download Info
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Paper provided by Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) in its series IZA Discussion Papers with number 136.Length: 34 pages
Date of creation: Mar 2000
Date of revision:
Publication status: published in: Economic Modelling, 2002, 19 (1), 105-120; see IZA Reprints 112/02
Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp136
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Related research
Keywords: equilibrium unemployment; panel data.; Growth;Other versions of this item:
- Michael Bräuninger & Markus Pannenberg, 2000. "Unemployment and Productivity Growth: An Empirical Analysis within the Augmented Solow Model," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 230, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
- O40 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - General
- O57 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Comparative Studies of Countries
- E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomics: Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution
This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:
- NEP-ALL-2000-05-30 (All new papers)
- NEP-DEV-2000-05-30 (Development)
- NEP-DGE-2000-05-30 (Dynamic General Equilibrium)
- NEP-LAB-2000-05-30 (Labour Economics)
- NEP-LTV-2000-05-30 (Unemployment, Inequality & Poverty)
References
References listed on IDEASPlease report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
- C Bean, 1992.
"European Unemployment: A Survey,"
CEP Discussion Papers
dp0071, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
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- Caselli, Francesco & Esquivel, Gerardo & Lefort, Fernando, 1996.
" Reopening the Convergence Debate: A New Look at Cross-Country Growth Empirics,"
Journal of Economic Growth,
Springer, vol. 1(3), pages 363-89, September.
- C Bean & Christopher A. Pissarides, 1992.
"Unemployment, Consumption and Growth,"
CEP Discussion Papers
dp0100, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
- Bean, Charles & Pissarides, Christopher, 1993. "Unemployment, consumption and growth," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 37(4), pages 837-854, May.
- Robert J. Gordon, 1980.
"The "End-of-Expansion" Phenomenon in Short-run Productivity Behavior,"
NBER Working Papers
0427, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
- Robert J. Gordon, 1979. "The "End-of-Expansion" Phenomenon in Short-Run Productivity Behavior," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 10(2), pages 447-462.
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